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Viv Timoun

‘Viv Timoun’ – this is Haitian Creole for: ‘Live, little child’, because it is the next generation who benefits from sustainable development. Since February 2010, we are a nonprofit organization and we hope that “we can work us out of business” by creating actual change, so that we will not be needed forever.

Viv Timoun is a non-profit organization registered in Belgium. Since 2010 we have supported and created several, successful projects in Haiti. Since 2016 our members have decided to work all around the world to raise the consciousness of our planet. Our society needs a profound change.

We support potential and strength. We believe that this is the only way to effectively start to solve problems. We do not pity poor people, but we believe in their abilities, their dignity and their knowledge. We are convinced that we can learn just as much from them as they from us.

VISION

For far too long humanity has been concentrating on what is not working and trying to “fix” the problems.
To understand why aid is not working, we recommend to the film “AIDependence”that speaks about the negative effects that aid can create.

We believe it is important to place our focus on individuals and groups who are successfully transforming our world.

We Believe in Permaculture

“Permaculture is a philosophy of working with, rather than against nature; of protracted and thoughtful observation rather than protracted and thoughtless labour; of looking at plants and animals in all their functions, rather than treating any area as a single-product system.”
Bill Mollison

This definition of permaculture expresses a basic concept in permaculture – examining and following nature’s patterns. Permaculture advocates designing human systems based on natural ecosystems. But, there are many other definitions of permaculture, just as there are many definitions of sustainable living.

The term permaculture is a contraction of the words “permanent,” “agriculture,” and “culture.” Although the original focus of permaculture was sustainable food production, the philosophy of permaculture has expanded over time to encompass economic and social systems. It is a dynamic movement that is still evolving.

The ethics earth care, people care and fair form the foundation for permaculture design and are also found in most traditional societies.

Fair Share: Set limits and redistribute surplus

We are provided with times of abundance which enables us to share with others.

People Care: Look after self, kin and community

If people’s needs are met in compassionate and simple ways, the environment surrounding them will prosper.

Earth Care: Rebuild natural capital

The Earth is a living, breathing entity. Without ongoing care and nurturing there will be consequences too big to ignore.

We Believe in Positive Change

We want to concentrate on what we can do, rather than who we need to hate. We want to show you all the amazing change makers from all around the world that are on a mission to change our planet.

This is much more than the imperative to recycle and regenerate all of our own energy, waste, and lifestyle. We are showing you creative solutions of making our own money, creating economies that generate income for those who work within them, growing our own food, choosing green and sustainable lifestyles.

We Believe in Exchange

“You can’t want things more than the community. You can’t go faster than the community. You can’t put priorities in front of the community. You have to be willing and able to sit in a position to wait for the conscience of the people block by block, street by street to change… and than follow up and support that change.

What NGOs can learn from Soley Leve (a Haitian movement of positive change) is how to have a friend instead of a beneficiary, how to have a partner instead of a victim. That’s the narrative that needs to change for this word development actually to happen. But as long it is still donor and beneficiary… it’s not a human relationship and its not going to work. We have to learn how to step out of the nice cars into the streets and not be afraid to led our guard down, not be afraid to make ourselves vulnerable and not be afraid to be a friend.” Sabina Carlsson (AIDependence)

It is important to us that we do not create dependency between us and the people we support. Our project partners also need to be aware of their responsibilities to achieve sustainable development.

We Believe in We are all One

We are all connected and interdependent. If we would like to solve the problem of poverty around the world, we need to start wherever we live. We need to inform ourselves as much as we can about the current societal system and how we can contribute to a change. That is one of our missions: educate people all around the world about how change is possible.

PAST PROJECTS

Rebuilding Haiti

On 12 January 2010, a devastating earthquake hit Haiti. ‘Viv Timoun’ has contributed to rebuild a destroyed school and orphanage in Port-au-Prince named MEVA (maison des enfants du village de l’avenir, children’s home of the future village) into an improved, larger and earthquake-resistant building.

Eyes on Haiti Photoworkshop

‘Viv Timoun’ organized a six-month photo workshop, between August 2011 and January 2012. The workshop was given by 6 volunteer teachers from Belgium and the rest of Europe, amongst them president of Viv Timoun Alice Smeets. Our goal was to teach them to become professional photographers. It was very successful, today many of them still work as photographers.

At the end of the workshop we organized the very first photography festival in the capital Port-au-Prince.

Nou Pou Nou

In 2013 Viv Timoun initiated a project, which consisted of working together with the Haitian Media outlets (newspaper, television, radio) to travel around the country to find positive stories and successful initiatives. We searched for communities that proved that development can be done without international help and reported about them. During one year, one story a week appeared in the media and was well received.

The goal of Project “Nou Pou Nou” was to bring back inspiration and initiative to the Haitian people via examples of successful projects led and/or completed by other locals. A considerable amount of the Haitian people has become depended on the help of western countries. This project allowed these people to regain confidence, independence and self-esteem. At the domestic level, it served as a hub where Haitian change-makers could explore the actions and lessons of their peers in other communities, allowing for community-to-community collaboration and positive cooperation, while inspiring and motivating communities which are not yet active.

CURRENT PROJECTS

The Inspirational Hub

We are supporting filmmakers and change makers all around the world to make change happen. In our Inspirational Hub, you can watch interview, lectures and short as well as long videos about the positive progress in our world.

Voices of the Earth

Bringing change makers to Haiti to exchange ideas

Viv Timoun organizes exchanges of knowledge between Haitians and European change makers.

Our voices of the Earth 2016:

Simon Paul Sutton
Simon Paul Sutton is an earth citizen on a charitable mission; through transparently sharing his story Burglar to Buddha from a life of crime to actor to earth citizen. He has embarked on a journey to empower and support teenagers and young adults to break open the invisible prisons of society by bringing into awareness the lies and dysfunctional programs we all uphold as truth, while inspiring them to fall in love with themselves and the planet. He uses transparent communication which he calls the language of love as the foundation of all he creates.
In Haiti, we will bring him together with a group of young adults that are involved in criminal activities. Simon will lead an open discussion group using transparent communication, anger release as well as writing excercices.

Mark Morales:
‘When you eat food that is alive, you feel alive! A new world opened. Now my passion has driven me to influence and teach people how to cook and prepare food in different healthy ways. – Chef Mark Morales.’
Mark Morales is a healthy chef that cooks mainly gluten-free and vegan meals.
In Haiti, Mark will led a workshop in which he teaches children how to cook healthy food with cheap, local ingredients.

INSPIRATIONAL HUB

Welcome in our inspirational hub. Here you can find interviews, lectures, short and long videos of people and ideas who are changing the world. Educate yourself!